Professor Arthur and The Curious Village
by GilbertOfPrussia
Summary: Things are not always what they seem, m'boy." The Professor replied, pushing on a tile in the wall and thus opening a secret passage.
1. Prologue

Alfred F. Jones stuck his head out of the train window, taking in the countryside as the wind whipped past him, whistling in his ears and messing up his hair. Just as he sucked in a large breathful of air, however, he was yanked back inside the compartment.

"Ow!" He cried, landing hard on his behind. "What was that for, Professor?!" he whined, glancing up at his tall British mentor, who straightened his top hat and started to scold him.

"Alfred, m'boy, how many times have I told you? A gentleman must always mind his manners, no matter what the situation!" He sighed, and once again read over the letter that had arrived merely days ago.

_Dear Professor Arthur…_

_I have heard that you are well-known for your knack of solving puzzles and_

_Mysteries and I wish to inform you that our quaint town of St. Mystere has quite the puzzle on its hands. If you wish to know more, you may find me at the Bonnefoy Mansion in the heart of St. Mystere. A map has been attached to this letter, along with a skeleton key. My regards to your apprentice,_

_Francis Bonnefoy_

And of course, Arthur had never been one to deny a good mystery. As always, his self-proclaimed apprentice had insisted on tagging along, and so here they were, on their way to a strange town, about to visit a strange man who, for all they knew, could be an assassin out to murder them.

"Professor! I'm bo-red!" Alfred whined, bringing the other back to reality.

"Well then, how about a puzzle to get you thinking? What is the last letter of the alphabet?"

The boy blinked in surprise, then smiled. "Are you kidding? That's not even a puzzle! The last letter's 'z'!" He exclaimed, but Arthur just shook his head.

"That's not it. Think harder, m'boy." It was so _simple_, and yet it took Alfred a few minutes before he figured it out.

"Oh!! I think I've got it!!" He proclaimed his voice full of enthusiasm, as it always was when he solved a puzzle. "It's 't', isn't it? Because alphabet is spelled a-l-p-h-a-b-e-t and the last letter is t!!"

The Professor nodded, satisfied. "Critical thinking is the key to success! Remember this, and you'll never be caught unprepared!"

****

I love Hetalia and I love Professor Layton! I just got the sequel today, so I just had to write this. I may or may not continue it; it all depends on whether or not you REVIEW!!!

Every time someone doesn't review poor little Latvia gets shorter!! Have mercy!!!!

Disclaimer: I never have and never will own Axis Powers Hetalia or any of its characters! I don't own Professor Layton or any of the puzzles, either!


	2. The Adventure Begins

A lot of people really seemed to like this, so, as promised, here's the next chapter! I'm having a lot of fun writing about Young!America and Gentleman!England, to be honest!

Disclaimer: I don't own Axis Powers Hetalia or Professor Layton! (Why?? Whyyyyyy???)

****

About an hour or so later, the train came to a grinding halt by the drawbridge outside St. Mystere. As the Professor and his apprentice gathered their things, he noticed that, not only were they the only ones getting off at this stop, they seemed to be the only passengers on the train.

"How peculiar…" He murmured as he followed Alfred across the drawbridge, where, surprisingly, the guard stopped them.

"Halt!" He commanded, blocking their path. They could have easily pushed past him, but Arthur, being a gentleman, would do no such thing.

"Can I help you, good sir?" He asked after tipping his top hat slightly in greeting. Being a very patient man, he was used to waiting.

Alfred, on the other hand, was not. "Excuse me, sir, but we reeeeeeeally need to get in there right now! Don't you know who we are?? We don't have any time to-"

"Yes yes, I know very well who you are." The guard replied, waving his words away. "Master Bonnefoy sent for you, but he has required that you prove yourselves worthy by solving a puzzle before you enter."

The boy sighed. _Another_ puzzle? Was everyone as obsessed with them as his mentor? Still, he always loved a good challenge…

"Can I do this one, Professor?" he asked, looking up at Arthur pleadingly.

"Alright then. Give it a go." He replied, nodding. Knowing him, he would figure out the answer moments after the question was given. Alfred was always awestruck by how sharp-witted he was, and this was only one of the reasons why he looked up to him.

"Okay, if you're ready, then: An electric train travels down a track at 50 miles per hour, moving towards the northwest. Which direction does the smoke go?"

Afred thought long and hard for a minute. The answer was pretty easy, but…there was something odd about the question.

He turned to the Professor, hoping for some sort of hint, but his face was expressionless. Then he looked back at the train behind him, which caused him to remember a conversation the two had during the ride…

"_Professor! There's no smoke coming out of the train! Is something wrong?" he asked, pressing his face against the glass._

"_No, m'boy." Arthur replied, shaking his head. "An electric train doesn't use coal, so likewise, it doesn't produce smoke."_

"_Wowwwwwww!" he exclaimed. "That's amazing!"_

"It doesn't go in any direction! Because…an electric train doesn't make an smoke!" he announced, beaming up his mentor, who nodded and smiled slightly.

"You've got a good head on your shoulders, the both of ya. Go on through, then." The guard said as he moved aside.

"Arthur's apprentice saves the day!" Alfred proclaimed, slinging his bag over his shoulder and walking beside the Professor into the waiting city. Who knew what kind of challenges and mysteries they would face? Only time would tell.

After all, a true gentleman never leaves a puzzle unsolved…

****

Yay, it's done! Let me just say this: I can't write anything without puzzles!! Please please PLEASE give me your puzzle ideas! This puzzle I owe to my friend Lauren, and the first one is from the actual game. ^^

Thanks for reading, and remember, if you don't review, Russia will sneak into your room in the middle of the night and-well, you know.

Ciao~!


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